


Please Stop Being Attractive

by doctorsorders_deathboy



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, College!AU, Fluff, M/M, Mentions of alcoholism, Sexual Tension, Student/Teacher, mentions of depression, solangelo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-27
Updated: 2016-07-07
Packaged: 2018-05-03 14:17:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5294360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doctorsorders_deathboy/pseuds/doctorsorders_deathboy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nico’s English grade is falling so he decides to accept Professor Solace’s offer for tutoring. Nico, however, did not account for the fact that his teacher’s smile can be rather distracting.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bailci](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bailci/gifts).



> Requested on tumblr by bailci (for mood/characters/setting, she chose sexual tension/student+teacher/college)  
> Thanks so much for the request, I enjoyed writing this :) I hope you enjoy it

Nico hurried across the campus, knowing he was already late but not wanting it to be worse. He was horribly torn between wanting to impress his professor and wanting to do anything to show that he didn’t give a fuck. He let himself into the warm library, rubbing his hands together and trying to regain feeling in his toes. It was exceptionally cold for November that year.

Nico went up to the second floor, making his way to the table he had planned to meet Mr. Solace at. His professor was already there, of course, with his books spread out and a pencil tucked endearingly behind his ear. Nico grumbled to himself, letting his hair fall in his face. He’d promised himself he was going to start trying harder in his literature class so that these stupid one-on-one sessions could _end._

Will looked up, spotting his student. “Hey! I was starting to worry you’d gotten lost,” he joked.

“Yeah, my roommate’s going out to a party tonight and he left the dorm a mess. I had a hard time finding my book.” That was a half-lie, Jason _was_ going out that night, but he was a total neat freak.

“That’s fine,” Will replied, smiling warmly.

This was the third time Nico had met up with his teacher after class. For some reason, the brunet had no idea what half of the vocabulary in his Lit class meant, and had the hardest time explaining his thoughts on paper. This was Will’s first year teaching at the university and he wanted his students to do well, so he had offered Nico extra tutoring sessions.

“Alright,” Mr. Solace said, pulling out his copy of _Waiting for Godot_. “I have some practice questions here to work on. The first is, ‘If it’s true that nothing happens in _Waiting for Godot,_ how is it that we manage to be entertained as the audience/reader?’”

_I’m **not** entertained, I’m bored out of my mind._

“Um,” Nico started. “Well, the play isn’t so much about plot as it is about spreading a moral. So, I guess the audience is entertained by having to think instead of just watching a story play out.”

Will nodded. “That’s not a bad start.” He kept talking, going on and on, but Nico didn’t hear a word he said. He was too enraptured by the shapes his teacher’s lips made as he spoke.

Nico was frustrated beyond belief with this class, with this tutoring, with Will. His professor looked way too young to be working there, and was _constantly smiling_ , making his blue eyes shine. Nico had started to blame his slipping grade on the fact that he had such a hard time focusing around his goddamn teacher.

“Nico?”

The younger snapped out of his thoughts, back to reality. “I’m sorry, could you repeat the question?” he asked, face turning red.

Will furrowed his brow and bit his lip. He watched Nico for a moment before closing his binder and leaning back in his chair. “Are you okay, Nico?”

The brunet shifted uncomfortably. “Yeah, why?”

“I don’t know, it’s just that… Whenever I see you, you always seem distracted. Is something going on?”

“No, of course not. It’s nothing. We should just get back to the play.”

“Listen, I know it’s none of my business, but if you want to talk, I’m here. I know that must be weird with me being your teacher and all, but if something outside of class is affecting your grades, I want to help.”

_You need to stop being so fucking nice and making me want you more, goddamnit._

“I’m fine, really. Now what was the question you asked?”

~*~

A week later, Will sat waiting in their normal spot at the library. He’d given a quiz that week that Nico didn’t do so well on, and his plan for the day was to go over it and make sure that Nico understood why he got so many questions wrong.

_Nico._

The short Italian was on the scrawny side and had an angry demeanor that most people were put off by, but not Will. The professor instead found himself infatuated with Nico’s deep eyes, his soft hair, his smooth skin. Will hated himself for feeling that way about a student, but found himself making excuses to be near him anyways.

Will’s eyes stayed trained on the direction from which Nico always came, waiting for him to show up. When he spotted the boy making his way towards him, he self-consciously ran his fingers through his hair and put on a smile. “Hey, look who decided to show up.”

Nico rolled his eyes a bit, making Will laugh.

“Alright, so the last time we met, we left off trying to decide what the moral of the play is. Any new thoughts since last time?”

The younger boy seemed preoccupied, shifting in his seat and not meeting Will’s eyes. “Uh… Not really.”

The professor bit his lip, pushing his books away. “Okay. New plan. I don’t think there’s any way for you to improve your grades if this other issue of yours is in the way. _That_ should be your new priority. I don’t want you sitting at your desk, banging your head and waiting for the information to click, you need to sort out whatever’s been bothering you.”

Nico scowled. “I appreciate your concern, but this isn’t exactly something that can be ‘sorted out’ so easily.”

Will frowned, concern washing over his face. “What is it?”

“It’s none of your business,” Nico spat. “Now, as long as you don’t mind, I thought we came to study.”

Nico was flushed and glowering, and his student reminding him to stay on task should not have been as arousing as it was. Will gulped, shaking his head slightly to remove the mental images of other situations where the brunet could be blushing and growling at him. “Right, I know, I just… I just want you to do well.”

_Because for some fucking reason I’m falling in love with you and I need to do something for you to see me as more than your teacher._

He was so getting fired.

~*~

S-O-L-A-C-E.

Nico di Angelo wrote the same six letters numerous times wherever he could. On the back of his napkin when he went out to lunch with Hazel. On his arm with a pen, before covering it up with his sleeve. Across the margins of his notes from class. _Solace._ Nico didn’t think he’d ever heard a more beautiful word.

For the next tutoring session, he was actually on time. He needed to make sure they finished up when they were supposed to because afterwards he’d promised to meet up with Reyna and fill her in on what she’d missed in math the previous day. He rushed into the warmth of the library and up to his usual table with Will. He attempted to open his bag, pull out his chair, and sit down at the same time, and only succeeded in spilling his things and slamming his forearm into the edge of the table. “Shit!”

Will attempted to hold back his laugh, but ended up giggling anyways. “Jeez, are you okay?”

Nico pulled back his sleeve to see if his arm was bruising, before quickly pulling the fabric back to normal after remembering whose name he’d written on his skin. “Yeah, sorry, I’ve just got a lot on my mind today.” _Great job, you just managed to successfully embarrass yourself in front of your unbelievably sexy teacher, you idiot._

“It’s fine,” Will said, leaning down to help pick up Nico’s things. He picked up Nico’s history notebook, which had landed face open. Turning it towards himself, he moved to close it, but froze at what he saw written in the margin of the page.

_S-O-L-A-C-E._

As realization hit Nico hard and cold, he snatched the notebook out of his professor’s hands and shoved it back in his bag. “Th-thanks,” he mumbled, mind racing as he tried to come up with an excuse.

“No problem,” Will replied, nonchalantly. He helped the poor boy finish picking up his things, this time not looking too closely at any of the belongings. “Okay, I’ve got an idea for today.”

“What?” Nico asked, still nervous as to what Will was thinking. Was it possible he hadn’t actually noticed his name doodled on the history notes?

The blond smiled and leaned forward on his arms, getting as close as he could to Nico with the table in between them. “We’re not going to talk about the play today. That hasn’t gotten us anywhere so far, so instead I want to get to know _you_.”

When his professor’s hand rested on top of his own, Nico’s heart began racing because _he was too fucking close and friendly and hot and why why why was this happening._

“What do you want to know?” Nico managed.

“I dunno. How’s your day been so far?”

_Not that bad until you started making me this sexually frustrated._

“Um, well I had a few classes in the morning and studied for a bit before rushing here. I’m supposed to meet a friend afterwards to help her catch up in history class.” Nico mentally patted himself on the back for being able to carry on a normal conversation despite being able to feel Will’s every breath across his face.

“Ah, well it sounds like you’ve been pretty busy. Why don’t we reschedule? That way you have some downtime before meeting your friend.”

“Uh, I guess.” _That sounds wonderful, I need to be anywhere that isn’t this close to your body._ “Wh-when?”

“Hmm,” Will’s fingers lightly brushed the side of Nico’s face, making his breath hitch. “How about Saturday morning at 8? In the main coffee shop on campus?”

“In- In the coffee shop?”

“Mhm. Oh, and don’t worry about bringing your books. We can just talk some more.” Will pulled back with a smirk. “I’ll see you then.” He grabbed his things and left swiftly, leaving Nico in his chair, his mind reeling.

He wasn’t sure whether he should be excited or terrified.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Feedback and constructive criticism are appreciated!
> 
> My tumblr is doctorsorders-deathboy.tumblr.com
> 
> ~*Comments and Kudos are a girl's best friend!*~
> 
> -Aspen


	2. Secrets are Hard to Keep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and Nico aren’t as discreet as they’d like to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s yet another fic that I’d intended to be a oneshot but I’m continuing it since multiple people requested it. Turns out, I’m actually getting excited for where this story might go. Let me know what you think of it, and if you have any requests for what you want to happen (i have plot planned but i like making sure my fics are what you guys want to read :)
> 
> Enjoy!

_ Nico hurried across the campus, knowing he was already late but not wanting it to be worse. _

It’d been a month since Nico had last found himself like this. Shivering in the cold, rushing to the library, and being mildly terrified of what he’d find when he’d get there.

But, oh, so much had changed during that month.

Nico was now in what was strictly not-a-relationship. There were regular not-dates, with strictly platonic hand holding and flirting-- that was only friendly, of course-- and today, for the first time, a strictly platonic kiss on the cheek.

At least, that’s what Nico kept telling himself.

The problem was that the not-a-relationship was becoming uncomfortably similar to a real relationship. And that wasn’t allowed to happen. 

Nico finally reached the warmth of the library, where he allowed himself to close his eyes, lean against the wall, and collect his thoughts before having to meet his study partner. Jason.

Nico let himself slip down the wall until he was sitting in the corner of the quiet building, hidden amongst the bookshelves. He’d tried so hard to be careful. To avoid disaster. But he should’ve known better, he shouldn’t have been this  _ stupid _ .

Because he was definitely in a real relationship with his teacher and now his roommate knew about it.

~*~

Will was extremely mad at himself.

He’d blown it. That was it. He’d fooled himself by thinking that maybe he’d have a chance with his student, but then he just had to go and kiss Nico on the cheek and now Nico wasn’t speaking to him.

Will tried to remember exactly what had happened. He remembered meeting up with Nico again, at the coffee shop they normally went to. It wasn’t the one they’d met at the first time. They’d nonverbally agreed that regularly meeting on campus would attract too much suspicion, so instead they started meeting at a local coffee shop a half hour away from campus on every Sunday afternoon. Only they weren’t calling it “meeting.” They were calling it a series of coincidences that they happen to always be there at the same time-- and then they might as well sit together and chat. 

So they’d been sitting together and talking like they always did, and then as they stood up to leave, Will had just leaned over and pecked Nico on the cheek-- it really didn’t have to be interpreted as romantic-- and suddenly Nico was rushing out the door. Nico hadn’t responded to Will’s texts since.

Will sighed, glancing down at his phone. In the two hours since Nico had left with saying goodbye, Will had texted him twice.

_ hey, i didn’t get the chance to say bye at Denise’s so i guess i’ll see you in class tomorrow. it was nice getting to see you today :) _

_ i’m sorry if i did anything to make you uncomfortable today. if i did, i want to talk about it. actually, i just want to talk in general. we need to sort out what exactly is going on. hope you can get back to me soon  _

Will half regretted sending his last text. That had been forty minutes ago. He groaned, rubbing his hand over his face and through his hair. He was screwed.

~*~

Nico finally found the will to stand up and walk towards where he’d agreed to meet Jason to study. That had been his plan for the day. Meet Will, grab his notebooks from his dorm, and then study with Jason. Of course, he hadn’t planned to see Jason at the coffee shop.

Nico thought he should probably be feeling elated. The man he was in love with had kissed him that day, even if it wasn’t on the lips. But the man he was in love with was his professor, and when his professor had kissed him, his roommate had walked through the coffee shop door with his girlfriend and had glanced over to see Nico on his not-a-date. So Nico was actually feeling pretty panicky.

He spotted Jason over at a table by a big window. Nico swallowed and walked over to his friend. “Hey,” he said as he sat down. “Sorry I’m late.”

Jason looked up from his notebook and silently watched as Nico pulled a notebook out of his bag.

“So,” the brunet said, “where should we start?”

Jason stared.

Nico swallowed again.

“You’re seeing Professor Solace.”

Nico sighed. “Listen, I know what it looked like but--”

“It  _ looked _ like you were on a date with your English professor, Nico.”

“Right, I know that, but--”

“I’m not even mad really, I mean, my older sister has done more stupid things, to be honest. But really, Nico? Do you even realize how idiotic you’re being here?”

“But I’m not--”

“I mean, jeez, I know you’re struggling in English but is this actually what you’ve resorted to?”

“Wait, you think this is about getting a good grade?”

“That’s exactly what I think this is about.”

“Okay, first of all--”

“Nico, this is  _ low _ , okay? Really, really low. If this gets out, you’ll be in major trouble, Solace might get fired, and everyone’s gonna start calling you a slut, alright? Do you really want that?”

“Jason, it’s not like that. Trust me, I’m--”

“Have you slept with with him?” Jason whispered, leaning across the table.

“ _ No, _ Jesus Christ, Jason, of course I haven’t slept with him. And we’re not dating, okay? We just run into each other at that coffee shop occasionally, and when we do we sit at the same table and chat, okay? It’s nothing weird like that. You’re making a big deal out of nothing.”

“Nico. He kissed you today.”

Nico grimaced. “Okay, yeah. Yeah, he did that, and um… that was pretty weird.”

Jason’s face darkened. “Nico, if he’s… If he ever tries to pressure you into doing something you don’t want to, you know that--”

“ _ God, _ Jason, it’s not like that, you perv.”

Jason frowned. “I’m just trying to look out for you.”

“You’re not my brother, for god’s sake.”

“I’m actually pretty sure that I am. I bet Hazel would approve of my honorary position.”

“Shut up.”

“Hey,” Jason said, more gently. “In all seriousness, I want you to know that you can talk to me about this.  _ Do _ talk to me about this, alright? I just want you to be okay.”

“Jason. I said shut up.”

Jason sighed hard through his nose. “Fine. If you refuse to talk about it, I won’t make you. Just be careful. Now can you give me your notes from Thursday? I was supposed to get them from Percy, but he is the actual lousiest note taker in the world, so I’d rather get them from you.”

~*~

Five hours after Nico had hurried out of of Denise’s Coffee and Bakery, Will got a text. When he saw Nico’s contact name show up with the text alert, he almost dropped his phone as he hurried to unlock it. When he and Nico had exchanged numbers, it had been with the excuse of them being strictly for scheduling tutoring sessions. They never actually texted much, they both found it too awkward. But Will had broken the unspoken rule of avoiding the subject of their relationship and he’d finally gotten a response from Nico.

_ you’re right. we do need to talk. but i want it to be in person. when are you free? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback is very appreciated (and it also tends to motivate me to write faster js)
> 
> My tumblr is doctorsorders-deathboy
> 
> I hope you're all having a wonderful day :)
> 
> -Aspen


	3. Shattered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico is stressed and Will is falling apart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’M FINALLY UPDATING THIS FIC OML. It’s been absolutely forever jfc. Many, many apologies for the angst you are about to read.
> 
> Thank you all so much to anyone who commented on previous chapters, your comments were honestly what motivated me to get this much done.

For once, Nico was the first one to get to the library. He chewed on his lower lip worriedly, tapping his foot in anticipation. He’d gone over what he wanted to say a million times but it did nothing to calm his nerves.

“Nico,” came Will’s voice from behind him. 

Nico turned quickly, heart beating in his chest. “Mr. Solace.” To his great relief, his voice came out steady and calm.

Will smiled at him warmly. “Would you like to sit down?”

“No,” Nico answered quickly. He hadn’t even wanted to come into the library, but he’d had to due to the temperature outside.

“Oh,” Will visibly deflated. He cleared his throat, as if to speak, but Nico cut in.

“I’d like to stop my tutoring sessions. My friend, Jason Grace, has offered to tutor me instead. After all, I wouldn’t want to impose on your time.” Nico’s voice was level and formal. He’d never spoken to Will like this before.

Will looked taken aback for a moment before putting on a poker face similar to Nico’s. “It’s really no bother. I don’t at all mind helping you.”

“I’d really rather be tutored by Jason. I feel as if our discussions get off track a lot more than is beneficial for my education.”

Will nodded slowly. “Whatever you believe would be best.”

Nico nodded once. “I’ll see you in class then.” He started to walk away, only stopping when Will called his name.

“Nico.”

Nico swallowed hard.

“I… I wish you the best.”

Nico turned to face Will’s baby blue eyes. “Thank you.”

And with that, he left the building.

~*~

Will really didn’t feel that he should’ve been this sad. He should’ve been relieved. Those tutoring sessions had been causing him much more trouble than they were worth. Nico had clearly stated where the boundary was between them rather than leaving Will to guess.

But he felt heartbroken.

On his way back to his apartment, he stopped at the liquor store to buy the strongest thing he could. By the time he was settled on his couch with a bottle of Bourbon, the full truth of what had just happened with Nico had set in.

Thank God he didn’t have anywhere to be the next morning.

~*~

“I’m proud of you,” Jason said to Nico when he got back to their dorm that night.

“Mhm,” Nico responded half heartedly.

Jason furrowed his brow. “You okay?”

“Of course. I just told my pedophile professor to fuck off. I just need some sleep.”

Nico could tell Jason was surprised by how blunt he sounded compared to earlier when he’d denied everything Jason had said to him in the library, but that was good. Shock made people shut up.

“Goodnight, Jason.”

“Right. Night, Nico.”

~*~

Will hated himself twice as much the next day. The whole point of getting drunk was to make himself stop caring about all of the negative thoughts in his head, but now that it was daylight he only felt worse. He’d gotten up in the middle of the night to hurl all of the shots he’d downed― God, he’d lost count of how many he’d had.

He gulped down some painkillers with several glasses of water, trying to find his bearings. God, he had to give a lecture later that day and, fuck, Nico would be there.

Will dragged his hand down his face, groaning. He felt like shit mentally and physically and his issues hadn’t been resolved at all. He let out a long breath, leaning against his kitchen counter. This whole thing would really be a lot easier if he just had a damn clue what about this was upsetting him so much.

~*~

Thankfully, Nico didn’t have much time to mope after confronting Will. Finals were coming scarily close and he found himself spending almost all of his time studying. Tutoring with Jason was going well. Things were starting to click and Nico had hope that maybe he wouldn’t fail his exam after all.

Seeing Will hurt more than he’d expected and he wasn’t even sure why. I mean, it wasn’t like they’d ever dated. The only thing that had really happened was that damn kiss on the cheek that had torn the whole thing apart. But Nico endured Will’s lectures, focusing on taking notes and actually trying to understand what Will was talking about. He wouldn’t get a second chance for Will to explain them to him anymore.

He was vaguely aware that Will looked a lot shittier than usual, but he refused to let himself think of him any more than he had to.

“Come on,” Jason said to Nico one night as he zipped up his coat. “You’ve been staring at that book all afternoon. Going out will be good for you.”

Nico shook his head. “I don’t have time for it. Have fun for me, though.”

Jason knew better than to try to convince Nico otherwise, so he said a goodbye that Nico didn’t hear and left.

Nico chewed on his lower lip as he scanned the page of his textbook, before reaching into the drawer next to him and pulling out one of his notebooks. He flipped through the pages, trying to find what he was looking for, suddenly freezing.

_ S-O-L-A-C-E. _

He sighed. The same name was scribbled all throughout his notes, and every time he saw it, he felt a small pang in his chest.

~*~

Will knew he shouldn’t be doing this. He  _ knew _ that. But he found himself walking into the bar anyways. 

He was tired. He was so tired of the never ending ache in his chest and racking his brain to try and find out why he hurt so much.

So he sat down at the bar and ordered some shots that he knew he’d regret later. But later was later and right now he hurt. The bartender gave him a knowing look and said, “Hang in there, man.” Will didn’t even nod back. 

At some point later― God, it could have been five minutes or an hour― a man sat himself down next to Will, looking over at him. “Rough night, huh?”

Will gave a shrug, glancing over at the man. He was lean, dark haired with dark eyes. Too similar to Nico.

“Y’know,” the man said, licking his lower lip. “You shouldn’t have to spend tonight alone.”

And that was when Will confirmed that he was very, very drunk because for some reason he found himself standing up and walking out to the guy’s car. 

When they got there, they didn’t even bother getting in the vehicle before their hands and lips were on each other, both more desperate than they were willing to admit. Will pressed his lips against the other’s harder, trying to get lost in the feeling, to just stop thinking for a bit. But all he could think of was  _ NicoNicoNico _ and he found himself imagining that it was his student’s body under his hands. Fuck, his goddamn  _ student _ of all people.

The other man pulled away and Will opened his eyes. He looked into the eyes of someone who was definitely not Nico and started running. He heard the man calling after him, but he kept running down the street and didn’t stop until he was multiple blocks away. When he did stop, he immediately dropped to his knees and hurled onto the pavement. He sat back on his heels, and threw his head back, letting the sharp winter air bite at his skin. Fuck, he wasn’t wearing a coat.

He was doing his best to not start crying because he’d finally, finally admitted to himself what it was that was making him hurt this insanely much.

He’d fallen in love.

~*~

Nico did surprisingly well on his finals, much to his relief. He seriously contemplated sending Will a text thanking him for his help, but he didn’t. He packed his things to go home. He was never coming back.

“Are you serious?” Jason had asked, eyes widening when Nico had told him the news.

Nico had nodded, unable to hold back a smile. “Yep. I’d been on their waiting list for a long time, and I came here, of course, to at least knock out some required courses, but they said they really love my work and that I could transfer there keeping all of the credits I’ve earned here.”

“Wow, Nico, that’s incredible. And this is a really good school?”

Nico had nodded again. “One of the best. I can’t believe I get to go there.”

“Where is it?”

“California.”

Jason had almost choked. “The actual opposite side of the country.”

“Yeah.”

“How the hell am I supposed to hang out with you anymore?”

Nico had laughed a bit. “We’ll find a way.”

“Wait, I’m going to have to find a new roommate.”

“Room with Percy,” Nico had suggested. “Get him away from that Leo guy that’s been driving him crazy for the past five months.”

Jason had rolled his eyes. “Well I guess I’ll have to, seeing as how my hotshot graphic designer friend is ditching me.”

Nico had laughed.

Jason had smiled gently at him. “I’m proud of you, Nico.”

Nico had smiled back. “Thanks."

But now Nico was packing his things and he was far from smiling.

~*~

By some miracle, Will managed to make his way back to his apartment that night. His mind was reeling and his stomach was turning but at least he was home in one piece. He collapsed on his bed, ready for sleep. But before the relief of unconsciousness overtook him, he was forced to once again think of the terrible, terrible thoughts clouding his mind.

He’d fallen in love.

And that didn’t happen to him often. Sure, he got crushes and he had the occasional one night stand to keep himself sated, but he’d only fallen in love a few times.

And from his experience, it never ended well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did not expect for this chapter to end up being so angsty jfc. I fully accept any resent you hold towards me.
> 
> Come say hi to me on tumblr! (@doctorsorders-deathboy)
> 
> ~*Comments and Kudos keep me writing*~
> 
> -Aspen


	4. New Year's

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New Years often calls for new beginnings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I apologize profusely for leaving you guys with that last chapter. Hopefully this one makes up for it (also this is the longest chapter I've uploaded for this fic so far, I'm so proud of myself)
> 
> In other news, we only have one more chapter left after this one! This is a short multi-chap largely because it was originally only meant to be a oneshot. However, I've loved writing this so far and I'm looking forward to the last chapter too :)
> 
> Enjoy!

“No, Jason.” Nico sighed and rubbed his temples.

“Come on, you’re leaving after this. Please? Just do this one last thing for me?” Jason sat on his bed, doing his best to make a pouty face to make Nico give in.

“Jason, there are going to be a bunch of people at the party that I don’t even know. Spending an evening awkwardly standing in the corner doesn’t sound very fun to me.”

“Well, the whole point of you going is to meet new people. Maybe you’ll meet a cute guy to help you get over Solace.”

Nico spluttered. “Wait,  _ what _ ?”

Jason sighed. “I’ve been your friend for years, I can tell when something’s wrong. I’m starting to think maybe there was something more going on between you two.”

“Jason,” Nico snapped. “For the last time, the most that ever happened was what you saw in the coffee shop that day, so give it a fucking break.”

Jason rolled his eyes. “I know that. I don’t think something happened that I didn’t know about, but… I don’t know. I think I misread your feelings about the situation.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Jason looked at Nico sympathetically. “You’ve been upset ever since you told him off. And I still think you made the right decision― I mean, dating your professor would’ve been beyond complicated, but….” Jason took a deep breath, shifting his glasses up his nose. “You’re allowed to admit that you’re upset about it. But you should get out there, you know? Moping and then denying that you were moping in the first place isn’t going to fix your problem.”

“Jason?”

“Yeah?”

“Shut the fuck up.”

Jason just shook his head. “Hey, if you don’t want to talk then I won’t make you. But you’re going to the party.”

“No. I’m not.”

“But it’s your first New Year’s being old enough to drink legally! Come on, we’ve got to celebrate that, at least.”

“I’m not getting drunk in a room full of strangers while you try to hook me up with people.”

“You’re going. End of story.”

“If I go, I’m not going to have any fun,” Nico grumbled, settling down on the sofa bed he’d been sleeping on for the past few days.

Jason had ended up moving in with his girlfriend, Piper. Piper’s previous roommate had moved back home to take care of her aging grandmother and Jason was more than happy to move in and help pay the rent rather than continue living in a university dorm. Nico was spending his last week in New York with them before he would get on a plane to take him to the opposite end of the country.

“I don’t care. You’re going.”

“Give up already.”

“Please?”

“I said no.”

“But―”

_ “No.” _

Three hours of on and off begging later, Nico begrudgingly agreed.

~*~

Will was relieved to see the term end. He was also happy to see that Nico had done well on his final for Will’s class (not that Will would admit it).

Christmas passed in a blur and the amount of time left until the next term was dwindling rapidly. Will just wanted to spend his larger amounts of free time binge watching and eating ice cream straight out of the tub― hell with the cold weather― but his brother and sister refused to let him mope.

“Come on,” Kayla insisted. “You can’t expect to get over this guy if you refuse to even leave the apartment.”

“Leave me to my despair,” Will deadpanned as he searched through Netflix for something new to watch.

Austin snatched the remote from his hand. “No,” he said. “We’ve got a fun day planned, so get dressed.”

Will scowled. “Remind me to never invite you over for the holidays again. You guys give me a headache.”

“Please, Will,” Kayla said softer than the first time. “I don’t like seeing you like this.”

Will sighed. “Listen, I’m going out on New Year’s Eve with you guys. I’m not obligated to do anything else.”

Kayla and Austin shared a look. Unfortunately, when Will set his mind on something, he wasn’t going to be swayed.

“Alright,” Austin said, patting his shoulder. “Let us know if you need anything.”

Will’s siblings left to go do whatever they had planned for the day, leaving Will with his TV and hot chocolate.

~*~

Nico shivered. Why did it have to be so cold out?

He pulled his coat tighter around himself as he made his way down the city street. He’d lasted a little over an hour at the party, which was more than he’d expected.

It was now past eleven on New Year’s Eve, and New York City was chaos due to Times Square. Nico wandered along, looking for refuge from the cold and noise. He eventually came to a stop in front of a small pub tucked in between some larger buildings in a less busy part of town. It looked like a nice enough place, not shady by any means. Nico pushed the door open and upon feeling the warm air inside decided that it was one of the best decisions he’d ever made.

A few TVs were hung on the walls that broadcasted the show currently taking place in Times Square just across town. The pub was littered with a few groups of friends, all of them appearing to be a few years older than Nico, but likely still in their twenties. The customers all seemed in good moods, and there were no signs of angry drunks so Nico deemed the place acceptable to have a few drinks before heading home.

He took a seat at the bar and ordered a drink before directing his attention to the TV screen just above his head. The current performer wasn’t one of Nico’s favorites, but watching the show seemed like a much less awkward option than trying to avert eye contact with the other people in the room and look like he had a purpose being there.

After a few drinks, Nico had loosened up considerably and was already feeling better about the night. Sure, he was spending it alone, but to him this seemed much more enjoyable than the party he’d come from.

Suddenly, a glass slammed onto the bar next to Nico. “Could I have another?” a man’s voice asked, and the bartender nodded, grabbing the empty glass and refilling it. “Thanks.” It was then that the man glanced over at Nico, who had frozen at the sound of the man’s voice. “ _ Nico? _ ”

Nico gave him a small smile. “Hey, Professor Solace.”

Will’s hands fidgeted as he tried to find a casual position to lean against the counter in, but he didn’t stop a grin from spreading across his face. “You can call me Will, you know.”

“Yeah, but calling you Professor makes you more uncomfortable.”   


Will laughed, a little louder than he probably would’ve if he hadn’t had a few drinks, but in the noisy pub no one noticed but Nico. Will frowned slightly, looking around. “Where’re your friends?”

Nico scoffed. “At a party with a bunch of people who I don’t know. I held in there for about an hour before I lost my patience with them.”

Will nodded. “I know the feeling. My brother and sister insisted that I get out of the house to hang out with them but now it appears they’ve ditched me to flirt with some other people here.” Will vaguely gestured over his shoulder towards the groups of people around the pub. “Hey, thanks,” he said to the bartender as he was handed a new drink.

Nico watched as Will fidgeted a bit as if deciding whether or not to stay. Nico couldn’t help but smile. “Wanna sit here?”

Will perked up at that, accepting the seat Nico offered. “So,” he started, taking a sip of his drink. “You’re transferring?”

Nico nodded. “I’m going to this great art school in California. I still can’t believe I got in.”

Will smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “That’s great. I’m really happy for you.”

“Thanks. Also, thank you for the tutoring,” Nico quickly added before he lost the courage to bring it up. “Even though it didn’t really work out, what tutoring I did get from you was really useful and seriously helped me pass my final exam.”

Will nodded. “No problem. I was going to congratulate you on how well you did.”

There was a moment of silence as Nico searched for a way to change the subject. “So what’s next semester look like for you then?”

Will shrugged. “Staying here. Hopefully it’ll go a little smoother than this one. This was my first semester I’d ever taught before so I was pretty nervous the entire time.”

“Well you did a good job in my opinion,” Nico said, even if that was stretching the truth a bit. Will really was a good teacher and he really had helped when he’d tutored Nico, but there had been the whole issue of their not-dating and the fact that Will had been pretty scatterbrained after Nico had cut off the tutoring.

Will gave a small smile. “That’s good to know.”

Nico played with his glass before swallowing hard and gathering the courage to say, “Well that’s a relief that you’re so new at teaching. I was worried that I was just terrible at guessing ages because, well, you look like you could be a student like me. I thought you  _ were _ a student when I first saw you.”

Will laughed at that. “I’ll take that as a compliment. And yeah, I’m only twenty-seven, I graduated about a year ago. My dad’s a professor, too, which helped me get the connections I needed to get this job.”

Nico nodded. “That makes sense.” He didn’t say it out loud, but he knew they were both thinking about the age difference. Six years.

~*~

If Will was honest with himself, he’d been terrified when he’d first run into Nico at the pub. The whole point of the evening was to supposedly help Will move on, but it appeared that the fates were against him.

Much to his relief, it didn’t take very long to fall into easy conversation with Nico. They talked about anything that came to mind― from music and books to the seasons and childhood memories. Will was right in the middle of a story about a Christmas party he’d gone to as a teenager where a girl was insistently flirting with him and he didn’t know how to politely tell her that he wasn’t interested, when the countdown started.

As the people around them started counting down from sixty, Nico turned to Will with a hint of a smirk in his features. “Wanna know something about my romantic history growing up?”

Will fought not to blush. “Sure.”

“I’ve never had a New Year’s kiss.”

“Really?”

Nico nodded, still smirking a bit. “I’ve never kissed anyone at midnight.”

Will’s mouth felt dry all of a sudden. “Neither have I, actually.”

Nico raised his eyebrows in mock surprise. “What about a kiss under the mistletoe?”

Will shook his head.

“Hm. Me neither. That’s a shame.”

Thirty seconds.

Will gulped down what was left of his drink, hoping it’d help. He saw Nico do the same.

“Is that something you’ve always wanted to do? Have a New Year’s kiss?”

Nico tilted his head. “Well, not always. But tonight I’ve been thinking, it’d be kind of nice.”

Fifteen seconds.

Will’s mind was spinning and it turned out that the alcohol really didn’t help.

“What do you think?” Nico asked.

“Yeah,” Will blurted. “It’d be nice."

Ten seconds.

Nico began to count down with everyone else in the room and Will joined in. As he counted, he felt sparked with energy, like there was electricity shooting down his spine.

Three.

Two.

One.

Nico grabbed Will’s collar and pulled him in close. The room was filled with noise and streamers being blasted from party poppers, but Will didn’t hear any of it. Nico’s lips were painfully soft and light and Will made a small frustrated sound before tilting his head and pressing their lips more firmly together. The electricity that had been running down his spine moments ago now shot through his limbs and it felt like every fiber of his being was hyper aware of everything he was feeling. He was acutely aware of the gentle heat from where Nico’s mouth met his and Nico’s hands moved up to cup his jaw. He moved his own hands so that one was fisted in Nico’s soft hair and the other gripped Nico’s side.

When they pulled apart, it wasn’t for long before their lips were meeting again and again and again. When Nico finally pulled his head back so that they could make eye contact, his face was flushed and his hair was mussed and Will felt a small bit of pride swell in him that  _ he  _ was the one that had made Nico look like that.

Will allowed himself to glance over towards where the others were in the pub. Everyone seemed distracted by other things, except for Kayla and Austin who gave Will smiles and thumbs ups.

Will just grinned and leaned in towards Nico again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully this is a much better chapter ending than last time's.  
> Agh, I still can't believe the next time I upload a chapter to this, it'll be the last.
> 
> ~*Comments and Kudos make me super happy*~
> 
> -Aspen


	5. One Year Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you want the rainbow, you'll have to get through the rain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, everyone, the last installment of Please Stop Being Attractive. I had so much fun writing this fic, especially this chapter! Thank you to everyone who supported me along the way, all of the nice comments I've received have really helped motivate me to get this done so I appreciate it. <3 I apologize for those of you who were expecting a longer fic, as I said last time, this was only meant to be a oneshot so even after I decided to continue it so that I could give Will and Nico's relationship some more closure, I didn't have enough ideas to make this multichap very long. On the bright side, this is the longest chapter yet, so I hope you enjoy it!

Despite the fact that he constantly complained about it, Nico actually didn’t mind working at the coffee shop. It wasn’t the worst job to have, and his boss was understanding about his school hours, though that wasn’t going to be an issue for much longer anyways. Nico would be graduating in just a few days.

He already had a job lined up for after graduation so that he wouldn’t have to spend his work hours serving coffee anymore. It was even in New York, so he’d get to see his old friends again and consequently get to live far from his father. For the first time in a long time, he wasn’t scared of his future.

However, life has a funny habit of throwing Nico di Angelo for a loop.

His Sunday morning shift was coming to an end and Nico had planned to spend the rest of his day relaxing in the apartment he shared with Reyna. He’d be moving out soon and hadn’t done nearly as much packing as he probably should have by that point. He checked his phone for any new notifications―there were none―before pulling on his jacket. His phone buzzed suddenly and Nico reached into his pocket to check it again. His breath hitched when he saw the notification.

_New Message from Mr. Solace_

_turn around, please?_

Nico whirled around, his eyes immediately landing on a mop of blond hair in a booth by the windows.

Will gave him a small smile and a nervous wave, fiddling with his phone in his other hand.

Nico was momentarily frozen before he found himself moving forward and sitting down across from Will. “What are you doing here?” he asked, old emotions flooding through him. Will hardly looked any different from the last time he’d seen him.

They hadn’t spoken in over a year.

Will fidgeted with his hands in front of him. “Okay, so… So when my family first announced that we were going to go on vacation to LA, I knew that was close to where you go to school so… Well, Piper and Austin talk sometimes and so I got in touch with Jason and asked about you. Because… well, I figured as long as I was in town, I might as well do some explaining.”

“And Jason just told you where to find me?”

Will nodded, scratching the back of his neck. “Well, he threatened me first, saying that if I did anything to hurt you he’d destroy me, but then… Yeah, he told me how to find you. Didn’t give me your address, though, because that’d be weird.”

“Why didn’t you just text me so we could meet up?”

Will let out a long breath. “Well, that was my original plan but then Jason said I should do this instead because it was more romantic.” His eyes widened after he realized what he’d said. “I mean―! Not that… Ugh, this is going worse than I thought,” he muttered, running a hand down his face.

Nico did his best not to laugh, but couldn’t help a small smile. “Okay… What explaining did you want to do?”

“I just…” Will swallowed. “We ended on… strange terms and… I thought I owed you an explanation for the mess that was the semester I taught you during.”

Nico raised an eyebrow, allowing him to continue.

“That…” Will bit his lip. “That wasn’t a great year for me. At all. So… I’m sorry that I was all over the place and really didn’t act appropriately around you. I mean…” He sighed. “I never wanted to be a professor, honestly. My dad wanted that for me, and he insisted that academia was a safe career choice and that I already had connections in the field so I might as well. And so, yeah, I decided to teach English because I’ve always enjoyed reading and I figured that class would be simple enough. But that whole semester, and then for the next semester after you left, too, I was just constantly stressed and dreading work and having this whole existential crisis because I thought I was committing to a life full of something I didn’t love. So there was that.” Will took another breath. “Sorry, I’m really turning this into some sob story, aren’t I?”

Nico made a noncommittal hum, gesturing for Will to continue.

“Sorry. I’m just trying to explain why my head was all over the place that year. Um.” He closed his eyes, collecting himself before continuing. “Yeah, so there was that. But also… Well, I don’t think I was fully over my last relationship at the time and I was really messed up inside because of that, too. Anyways, so I wasn’t in a great place mentally is my point. And then I started tutoring you because I just really wanted for my students to do well for my first time teaching, but… Well, you were also really cute and I was admittedly aware of how much I was falling for you, and I kind of let myself because I knew it was never going to go anywhere.” Another deep breath. “Well, I _thought_ it was never going to go anywhere.

“Then, when I found out you were into me, too, I… Well, I was flat out stupid. I shouldn’t have continued any of that, Nico, and I’m really sorry for it. I was being careless and not at all thinking about consequences. It wasn’t until you pushed me away that I realized…” He stopped speaking.

“That you realized what?”

“That I realized how in love with you I really was.”

~*~

Will could feel that his hands were shaking. At first he blamed it on caffeine, before realizing that he hadn’t actually _bought_ coffee and had instead hidden in this booth with his hood up so that Nico wouldn’t notice him until he was done with this shift. And now here he was, doing a terrible job of explaining despite the fact that he’d gone over this monologue in his head countless times before coming here. _God._

“After that… I kind of fell off the deep end. It… It brought back memories I didn’t care to recall and I just, like I said earlier, hadn’t been doing great anyways.” He cleared his throat as he realized that he was starting to get choked up. “Not that I’m blaming you for this or anything,” he added quickly. “So… That’s why I was a mess for that last part of the semester. And then, there was New Year’s Eve.”

Nico let out an awkward laugh at that. “Yeah… I’ll take the blame for that. I led you on and then hopped on a plane without a word.”

Will was about to protest before realizing that Nico was actually fairly correct. “Still,” Will insisted, “I didn’t handle that well, either.”

Nico looked down at his hands, frowning. “What’d you do after I left?” he asked softly.

“Well…” Will wasn’t sure how much he wanted to tell Nico. “I… I got worse. Which, again, you shouldn’t take the blame for. But… yeah, I haven’t had a very fortunate romantic history and that was just kind of a reminder of that, I guess? The good news is that that whole dilemma pushed me to get the help I needed so I got put on some meds and started seeing a therapist and pretty much sorted my life out. I mean,” he laughed nervously. “I’m making it sound a lot simpler than it was, but I made it through. I quit my job and now I’ll be starting med school soon and―”

“Med school?” Nico asked, raising his eyebrows.

“Oh, yeah… Um, well, I’ve wanted to be a doctor ever since I was a kid, but I gave up on that after I realized what my dad was expecting me to be. After I went to school to become a professor, I figured that was it, I was stuck with that job for the rest of my life, but one night when I talking with my dad, I just broke down and told him how much I hated my job. He surprised me and was actually super supportive of me becoming a doctor. He said it was noble and respectable and a bunch of other stuff I don’t remember. So… He waved his magic wand―I swear the man must have one because he’s unbelievable―and he helped me get into med school, largely just by getting me some great connections with the school’s admittance board, but also helped me study to pass the entrance exam and stuff.”

“How are you paying for it?” Nico asked.

Will rolled his eyes at that. “Well I got some great scholarships luckily, but definitely not full ride. I’ll be paying off my student loans for years to come but I figure that’s less miserable than working at a job I hate.”

Nico nodded. “Well good for you!” He sounded impressed, which Will couldn’t help but smile at. “Do you know what kind of doctor you want to be?”

“Well… I’d like to go into cancer research, actually.”

Nico’s eyes widened. “Wow, your dad was right about calling your new career choice noble and respectable. Seriously, I’m impressed. I’m spending the rest of my professional life designing aesthetically pleasing logos and websites.”

Will laughed at that. God, he’d forgotten how much he loved being with Nico. “Speaking of, how’re you planning to continue professionally?”

“I’m moving back to New York, actually.”

Will stared at him incredulously. “Seriously?”

“Yeah.”

“Does Jason know about this?”

“Yes,” Nico said with a small grin.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Will said, shaking his head. “The way he was talking to me… God, I thought this was the last time I’d ever run into you.”

Nico tilted his head. “Do you want it to be?”

Will’s shoulders relaxed as he gave Nico a small smile. “No.”

_~~~_

_Epilogue_

_~~~_

_S-O-L-A-C-E._

Nico smiled as he signed his signature on the receipt at the grocery store. He loved those six letters.

“Thank you!” said the woman he handed the receipt back to her. She was surprisingly enthusiastic as she rang Nico up, but she was unbelievably friendly and polite and Nico was in a good mood so he saw no reason to complain.

“Here’s your copy!” she said cheerfully, slipping a piece of paper into Nico’s bag. “Have a good day, Mr. Di Angelo-Solace!” she added after checking the receipt he’d handed her. “Come again soon!”

He thanked her, smiling as he left the store. He got into his car, checking the time on his phone before he started to head home. He still had an hour before Will would be getting back from work. It was his first day at his new job and Nico was planning a celebratory dinner for him.

Nico got to work in the kitchen as soon as he got to their apartment. He glanced at their calendar as he chopped up some vegetables, smiling upon seeing his anniversary with Will coming up in a few weeks.

In seventeen days, he will officially have been with Will for nine years. They’d been married for four of them. And whereas those nine years had been the best of his life, they’d also been some of the most difficult. The earliest parts of their relationship had been the hardest and they’d come close to breaking up more than once.

But they’d made it through every fight, through every confession. Will had held Nico as he cried and told him about Bianca and Nico had returned the favor when Will confessed to him that his last relationship had been with a man who died of cancer, leaving Will to flounder through the rest of college before getting a job he couldn’t stand.

And now here they were. Will had gotten the job he’d dreamed of, and Nico’s work was going well, too. They’d been discussing adoption a lot recently, seeing as how all their friends were now parents, and now that they were financially stable they were capable of raising a child.

“I’m home!” Will called from the front door of the apartment.

Nico smiled, going to meet him. “So how’d it go?” he asked before reaching up to wrap his arms around Will’s neck as their lips met.

“It was exhausting but amazing.”

Nico laughed. “Good.”

“Mm, it smells good in here,” Will said as he hung up his jacket.

“I cooked something special to show you how proud of you I am. It’s almost ready.”

Will kissed him again. “You’re the best.”

“I know,” Nico said with a grin. “Now go change, you smell too sterile.”

Will laughed and went off to their bedroom as Nico returned to the kitchen.

After dinner that night, they went out and sat on the small balcony attached to their apartment, looking out over the city and talking. Nico had a glass of wine, but Will just had a San Pellegrino. He didn’t drink anymore, having admitted to Nico that he used to have a bit of a drinking problem and that he felt more comfortable avoiding alcohol now.

“I love you, you know,” Will said.

Nico gave him a big smile. “I love you, too, you big sap.”

Will wrapped an arm around Nico as they watched the cars and pedestrians go up and down the streets. Nico wondered what each of those people down there was doing, where they were headed, how they felt. He hoped they were as happy as he was.

He hummed happily, settling into Will’s arms as the sun set behind the skyline. It was this peace, this contentment that made every bit of pain he’d went through to get there worth it.

“We should head in,” Will said after a while.

“Mm, just a few more minutes.”

“Okay.”

They sat there, just the two of them, as the city bustled around them, both lost in their own thoughts. They admittedly had no idea what their futures entailed―how could they?―but they weren’t afraid. Whatever came next, they’d get through it together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again to everyone who's supported this fic, it means a lot to me. I hope you all found the ending to be satisfying!
> 
> ~*Comments and Kudos make me smile!*~
> 
> Come talk to me on tumblr: [doctorsorders-deathboy](http://doctorsorders-deathboy.tumblr.com/)
> 
> -Aspen


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